The Ethereal
by Mishka89
Summary: He's popular and smart, beautiful with a grace received in awe by everyone around him. If only the people he cared about most would notice. They could have stopped his pain. PreSeries. OneShot.


**Title:** The Ethereal

**Disclaimer: **Ok, let's see, replica's of Dean's necklace, silver ring and two modle Impalas not to mention heaps of other merch: check. Writes and ownership of Supernatural and it's characters, nup, still Kripke's.

**Summary: **He's popular and smart, beautiful with a grace received in awe by everyone around him. If only the people he cared about most would notice. They could have stopped his pain. Pre-Series. OneShot.

**A/N:** Ok this one has been sitting in my writing folder for probably over a year now. I figured seeing as it wasn't doing anything and I as I haven't posted anything in quite some time that I may as well post it. It's a bit different from the rest of my work as I usually use lots of detail in my stories but this one is supposed to be vague so as to leave room for the reader to think. It's also supposed to be a bit disjointed and primitive. I'm still not too sure as to whether I like this or not (I was a bit depressed when I wrote it), but I'm hoping that you guys do :)

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He feels like they don't see him. He's invisible to them. Always has been since his mother died, and always will be. They're always fighting and they end up ignoring him even if he's between them trying to stop the harsh words being flung so carelessly. 

Sometimes he talks to the air around him. He gets a better answer from that than he does from his own family. He went to the school councilor once and the nice lady told him he should be on medication. That there was a chemical imbalance in his brain and that it was making him depressed. He knows she's wrong. It's his family. They don't see him. They don't hear him.

People say that neglect is the worst form of child abuse. Hell beat the shit out of the kid but at least love it. Don't just ignore it. Don't just not love it.

Love for him died with his mother. With his happy carefree childhood. Now he's reckless, always trying to get their attention. Getting hurt on hunts so that he can get some care be it from physical contact of his father or brother stitching up his wounds, or yelling at him for being an idiot.

He tries being loud and a smart ass. But no, they don't see him. Dad has his hunting and Sam has his school. So he has one night stands because at least for the duration of the time when he's with that women or hell, if he's too upset to care, that guy, and he relishes in the attention they have for him and only him. He feels loved. Even if it is only for one night.

Then he returns home, _home_, to where they're staying and gets perhaps a quick glance up from one of the two most important people in his life just to see who's at the door. Then it's into the bathroom where he can strip his clothes and look in the mirror and repeat to himself _I'm Dean. Dean Winchester and I'm not invisible. _Again and again and again until he starts to believe it.

They only see him when they want something be it _clean the guns_ or _I need a lift to school_. His teachers and peers see him. He makes sure of it. He excels at school and becomes the most popular guy in school. But none of that means anything. They're not who he wants to be noticed by.

There's a hunt gone bad when he's nineteen and he takes a knife in the heart from some hyped up witch. He thinks he may hear his name yelled by Dad or Sammy, hell maybe if he's lucky even both. He's not sure though. He can't think past the warm safe feeling that's enclosing around him.

There's a feminine voice that he hasn't heard in ages and he closes his eyes. He wants to go to that voice, wants to be held safe in those arms. _Come with me Dean. I love you baby and you're not invisible. You never were. _He smiles and lets go, finally being seen, finally being loved.

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Ok so that's it! I suppose that you can interpret the ending differently if you want. I'm trying to whip something up for Halloween but I'm having some writers block. Hopefully if you guys review this I'll be inspired and be able to push through that dreaded S.O.B! So please let me know if you loved it or hated it or thought I could have done something different :) 

Mishka xXx


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